HIGHAM FERRERS HUNDRED 



R.\UNDS 



trefoiled inner order, all on shafts with foliated capitals 

 and moulded bases. The middle arches form a west 

 window of two lancet lights, and below the outer ones 

 are moulded and cusped quatrefoil openings lighting 

 the landings at either end of a gallery or passage in the 

 thickness of the wall. The end spandrels of the arcade 

 are occupied by sculptured figures playing musical 

 instruments, that to the south very much weathered, 

 the other representing a lute-player. The middle span- 

 drels have heads within small sunk quatrefoil panels. 

 Internally the west window is of great beauty: it is in 

 reality two windows, with inner and outer openings 

 divided by the wall passage,' the inner plane of tracery 

 (which originally was visible from the nave, below the 

 tower arch) being treated with an elaboration of detail 

 in marked contrast to the outer lancets. The arches are 

 of two hollow-chamfered orders on shafts with foliated 

 capitals and moulded bases, the inner order being of 

 trefoil form and richly ornamented with foliage in the 

 hollow. The hood-mould forms a kind of single trefoil 

 arch thrown over the two lights, but also following the 

 curve of each, the spandrel or space thus formed being 

 filled with a moulded quatrefoiled circle. The lower 

 part of the window, to a height of 5 ft. 10 in., is now 

 blocked by the wall supporting the floor over the i 5th- 

 century vault, and only the upper part can be seen from 

 within the tower. ^ 



In the third stage facing west is a beautiful two-light 

 window of two chamfered orders on triple jamb-shafts 

 with moulded capitals and bases, and a square head with 

 trefoiled lintel. The window is set under a tall gable, or 

 pediment, with a half-gable on either side, which form 

 a series of diagonal moulded ribs across the face of the 

 tower between the buttresses, the intervening wall 

 spaces having sunk quatrefoil panels. The wall is reduced 

 in thickness above the diagonal ribs, which thus perform 

 the same function as a simple set-oiFin work of a plainer 

 nature. 



On the north and south sides the arcades of the 

 second stage consist of four arches, and that of the third 

 stage of five, all of two chamfered orders, on triple 

 shafts with moulded bases, the capitals in the lower 

 arcade being foliated and in the upper moulded. There 

 are other variations in detail. On the north side the 

 arches of the lower arcade are subdivided, with carved 

 corbels supporting the inner arches and with a head in 

 the spandrels thus formed. The spandrels of the arcades 

 are variously treated: on the north the three middle 

 ones have heads set in quatrefoil panels, our Lord in the 

 centre, the two ends being occupied by figures playing 

 pipe and tabor (cast) and viol (west), the latter holding 

 the bow in the left hand. On the south there is a figure 

 playing a harp in the eastern spandrel, but the others 

 have cusped trefoils only. 



In the upper arcade there are no shafts at the angles 

 and the middle arch is pierced with a square-headed 

 two-light window with moulded mullion and trefoiled 



lintel. Except for a single trefoil side, on the south the 

 spandrels are plain. The third stage arcade occurs also 

 on the east face of the tower, where the lower part is 

 now below the roof and seen from the nave above the 

 tower arch. 



The bell-chamber stage is the same on all four sides: 

 it has an arcade of two wide and two narrow (end) 

 arches of a single chamfered order and hood-mould, on 

 shafts with moulded capitals and bases. Set within the 

 two wider arches are coupled lancet windows of two 

 chamfered orders with solid spandrels and shafts with 

 moulded capitals and bases. 



The tower arch is of three chamfered orders with 

 hood-mould, on half-round responds with two attached 

 shafts on each side, all with moulded capitals and bases. 

 Above it is the table of the high-pitched 13th-century 

 roof, and within it, filling the space above the springing, 

 an inserted low segmental arch covering the i ;th-cen- 

 tury vault, the ribs of which meet in a circular eye-hole. 

 Upon the surface of the lower arch are the remains of a 

 painted clock dial, recording twenty-four hours, sup- 

 ported by kneeling angels, behind which are smaller 

 figures of the donor and his wife, John and Sarah 

 Catlin.' The floor of the tower is three steps below the 

 level of the nave. 



The spire has low broaches, plain angles, and two 

 sets of gabled openings on the cardinal faces, with a 

 single set on the alternate faces ranging with the upper 

 tier: all the openings are of two lights with forked 

 mullions. The total height of tower and spire is 180 ft. 



The once ample furniture of screens has been cut up 

 and shifted so recklessly that it is no longer possible to 

 assign all the fragments to their proper places.^ In 

 Bridges's day the east end of both aisles was 'parted off 

 by a screen', that in the south aisle having 'paintings in 

 eight different squares with inscriptions underneath 

 relating to the history of Joseph'.' These screens appear 

 to have been in existence till early in the 19th centur>', 

 and the cornice on which the story of Joseph* was 

 painted survived till 1837, but was then apparently 

 under the chancel arcade, where parts of the screens, 

 much restored, have been set up below the two eastern 

 arches. That under the easternmost arch is of i jth-cen- 

 tury date and has six traceried openings and moulded 

 cornice which still retains traces of colour.' The other 

 is a century older, with four traceried openings divided 

 by shafts,' and above it, in place of a cornice, a length 

 of 13th-century oak trefoil 'arcading', which for years 

 lay in the porch chamber." A late- 14th-century screen, 

 removed from the westernmost arch when the present 

 organ was erected, now stands between the south chapel 

 and the south aisle of the nave, the whole of the lower 

 part and the doorway being new.'" Tracery and cresting 

 from other 14th-century screen work is now made up 

 into a reredos at the east end of the north aisle, and a 

 portion of a screen dated 1 701, formerly in the tower 

 arch under the organ gallery, is preserved in the vestry. 



' Access to the passage, or gallery, 

 which is I ft. 10 in. wide, is from the vice. 

 There appears to have been formerly a 

 stair also in the north-west angle up to 

 this level. 



' There is an engraving of the window 

 •s it originally appeared in Rickman's 

 Gothic Arch. (7th ed.), 1 18. 



* The dial was uncovered in the restora- 

 tion of 1874. In 1849 it was described as 

 a circular panel, (he margin of which pro- 

 jects and has within it a shallow hollow 

 moulding filled with flat- round pellets or 



plates': Chs. Archd. N'lm, 62. At that 

 time the west wall of the nave was con- 

 cealed by an organ and gallery. The hands 

 of the dial are now driven by a clock put 

 up in 1903. ♦ Arch. your. H\x, \TJ. 



' Uni. of l^orthantt.W^ 1 86. 



^ Sketches of the subjects are in the 

 British Museum, Add. MS. 32467, 

 fT. 220-i. They represent (i) Joseph's 

 dream of sun, moon, and stars; (ii) Israel 

 rebuking Joseph; (iii) Joseph's brethren 

 preparing to sell him; (iv) Joseph in 

 prison; (v) Pharaoh taking Joseph from 



prison; (vi) Preparing for faiTiine; (vii) 

 Visit of his brethren ; (viii) The brethren 

 at table with Joseph. There is also a view 

 of the church in 1721 (f. 219), and another 

 in 1807, Add. MS. 3741 1, f. 16. 



7 It stands above a table tomb. 



• The missing shafts have been replaced 

 by new ones made out of bell-frame oak. 



9 It consists of thirteen small trefoil 

 'arches' cut in the solid on modern shafts. 

 Some other fragments of I3th-cenlury 

 woodwork are preserved in the vestry. 

 '» Arch. Jour. Ixii, 477. 



37 



